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Inspection of the Working Face

A scheme is required for the inspection and maintenance of the whole quarry and its plant. The scheme should include all, roads, excavations, overburden, bunding, edge protection, tips and lagoons, along with any buildings and work equipment.

The frequency and level of detail of inspection will depend upon a number of factors, the work activities such as the nature of the materials, face and tip heights and weather conditions. Periods of heavy rain may result in loose materials, failures of tips and faces, and roads being washed away.

In all cases, the frequency of inspection needs to be reviewed in the light of experience but a daily inspection must be carried out by a competent person and a record of each daily inspection made. The daily inspection must include the inspection of:

Working quarry faces, sides and overburden;

Every road used by persons at work are to be inspected for loose ground or loose rock; and

All external parts of all machinery and appliances.

If an imminent risk of serious injury is discovered during an inspection, the inspection scheme must require immediate action to safeguard those at risk. This may include, for example, suspension of work in the area

Records, which may be computerised with digital signatures, should be kept for all inspections of working faces.

The Quarry Regulations require that before the start or restart of work, stripping and extraction faces above work areas or haul roads are checked for loose ground or rocks and scaling is carried out where necessary. Faces above working places must be inspected to ensure that loose ground or rocks do not create significant risks.